Articulation drill with illumination

ABSTRACT

The present invention is an articulating hand power tool which in one embodiment includes a head portion including a head housing configured to articulate with a main housing, a bit holder rotatably positioned within the head housing, and a lighting assembly configured to emit a first elongated beam pattern from the head portion.

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.13/411,822, filed on Mar. 5, 2012 (now U.S. Pat. No. 8,602,582), whichin turn is a continuation of co-pending U.S. application Ser. No.12/701,783, filed on Feb. 8, 2010 (now U.S. Pat. No. 8,128,250, which inturn claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/294,059,filed Jan. 11, 2010. The disclosures of the three above-identifiedpatent applications (and associated patents) are hereby totallyincorporated by reference in their entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an electric hand tool and moreparticularly to an articulating power hand tool.

BACKGROUND

Electric drills are usually constructed as straight-drilling machines inwhich the drill spindle extends parallel to the motor shaft and axis ofthe housing and, for specific purposes, as angular-drilling machines inwhich the drill spindle is aligned at a right angle to the motor shaftand housing axis. In certain applications in which both straight andangular drilling must be carried out, as is the case in installations inwooden house construction, the two machines must be at hand forcontinuous alternation.

In order to reduce the number of tools needed at a work site,articulating drills have been developed. One such articulating drill isdisclosed in U.S. application Ser. No. 11/593,187, filed on Nov. 3,2006. The tool disclosed in the '187 application includes a head portionincluding a head housing, a bit holder rotatably positioned within thehead housing, and a bearing member operable to transfer a first axialforce from the bit holder to the head housing. A frame is rotatablyconnected to the head portion for placement in a plurality of positionswith respect to the head portion and operably connected to the headhousing for receiving the first axial force transferred to the headhousing. The tool further includes an articulating gear system fortransferring rotational force generated by a motor to the bit holder ateach of the plurality of positions.

The tool disclosed in the '187 application thus provides a single toolwhich provides both straight and angular drilling or other shapingoperations. During operation of the tool disclosed in the '187application, as well as operation of other power tools, precise controlof the hand-held power tool requires that the user of the tool have goodvisibility of the work piece at the point of the shaping operation. Lackof sufficient lighting is frequently caused by generally poorly lightedconstruction environments. Even in areas of generally good lighting, theoperator of the tool and the tool itself cast a shadow over the workpiece. Visibility can also be reduced by a build-up of cutting debris(e.g., sawdust).

Various alternatives are available to improve visibility such as byremoval of debris formed by the shaping operation. Some power toolsemploy vacuum systems connected to the tool to remove cutting debris.The use of a vacuum system, however, often makes control of the toolmore cumbersome. Moreover, even if the shaping operation debris isremoved, the potential remains for insufficient lighting at the point ofa shaping operation solely from lack of proper lighting. The potentialfor poor lighting is increased by the ability to use tools such as thetool disclosed in the '187 application in confined work areas.

Some attempts to ameliorate poor lighting conditions at the point of ashaping operation have included the addition of one or more lightemitting diodes (LED) near the bit holder of a tool. The use of pointlight emitters is effective in applications with little if any debris solong as an appropriate sight line to the point of the shaping operationis available. In applications with greater levels of debris, andapplication where there are limited sight lines available such as inconfined work areas, point light emitters are easily obfuscated.

Accordingly, there is a need for a hand-held power tool that allowsincreased illumination at the point of a shaping operation. A power toolthat allows increased illumination at the point of a shaping operationwith an articulating power hand tool with a reduced forward section anda compact articulating system is also needed.

SUMMARY

The present invention in one embodiment is an articulating hand powertool which includes a head portion including a head housing configuredto articulate with a main housing, a bit holder rotatably positionedwithin the head housing, and a lighting assembly configured to emit afirst elongated beam pattern from the head portion.

In a further embodiment, an articulating hand power tool includes a mainhousing, a head portion configured to articulate with a main housing, abit holder rotatably supported within the head portion, a first lightingstructure positioned on the head portion, and a lighting assemblyconfigured to emit an elongated beam pattern from the first lightingstructure.

These and other advantages and features of the present invention may bediscerned from reviewing the accompanying drawings and the detaileddescription of a preferred embodiment of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention may take form in various system and methodcomponents and arrangement of system and method components. The drawingsare only for purposes of illustrating exemplary embodiments and are notto be construed as limiting the invention.

FIG. 1 depicts a side plan view of an articulating drill incorporatingfeatures of the present invention with a head portion positioned at aninety degree angle with respect to a main housing portion;

FIG. 2 depicts a side plan view of the articulating drill of FIG. 1 withthe head portion aligned with the main housing portion;

FIG. 3 depicts a partial front perspective view of the articulatingdrill of FIG. 1 showing a shaped beam pattern light emitter;

FIG. 4 depicts a perspective view of the articulating drill of FIG. 1with the battery pack, a portion of the main housing cover, and aportion of the head housing removed and a bit in the bit holder;

FIG. 5 depicts a cross-sectional view of the head portion, thearticulating gear system and the planetary gear system of thearticulating drill of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 depicts an exploded perspective view of the head portion,including an automatic spindle lock system, of the articulating drill ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 7 depicts a top plan view of a bracket used to support an outputpinion shaft in the articulating drill of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 depicts a side plan view of the bracket of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 depicts a top elevational view of the planetary gear section,articulating section and head portion of the articulating drill of FIG.1 with the main housing and a portion of the head housing removed;

FIG. 10 depicts a side elevational view of the articulating gear systemof the articulating drill of FIG. 1 including a bevel gear and twopinion gears;

FIG. 11 depicts a perspective view of a portion of the head housing ofthe drill of FIG. 1 with a plurality of teeth in a well which are formedcomplimentary to teeth on the articulation button;

FIG. 12 depicts a perspective view of the articulating button of thearticulating drill of FIG. 1;

FIG. 13 depicts a perspective view of the bottom of the articulatingbutton of FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 depicts a partial top elevational view of the inner surface ofthe outer housing of the articulating drill of FIG. 1 with teeth formedcomplimentary to the teeth on the articulation button and a hole forreceiving a raised portion of the articulating button;

FIG. 15 depicts a top elevational view of the inner surface of the outerhousing of the articulating drill of FIG. 1;

FIG. 16 depicts a perspective schematic view of a beam pattern planewith an elongated partial toric section beam pattern;

FIG. 17 depicts a plan view of the beam pattern plane and beam patternof FIG. 16;

FIG. 18 depicts a partial front plan view of a head portion of anarticulating drill with a lighting assembly that generates an elongatedbeam pattern formed in a substantially complete toric section on a beampattern plane;

FIG. 19 depicts a plan view of a beam pattern plane with a beam patternformed in a substantially complete toric section by the lightingassembly of FIG. 18;

FIG. 20 depicts a partial front plan view of a head portion of anarticulating drill with a lighting assembly including three lightingstructures that generate an elongated beam pattern including three toricsection portions on a beam pattern plane; and

FIG. 21 depicts a plan view of a beam pattern plane with a beam patternincluding three toric section portions generated by the lightingassembly of FIG. 18.

DESCRIPTION

An articulating drill generally designated 100 is shown in FIG. 1. Inthe embodiment of FIG. 1, the drill 100 includes a main housing portion102 and a head portion 104. The main housing portion 102 houses a motorand associated electronics for control of the drill 100. The mainhousing portion 102 includes a battery receptacle for receiving arechargeable battery pack 106 as is known in the art. In one embodiment,the rechargeable battery pack 106 comprises a lithium-ion battery. Thebattery pack 106 is removed by depression of the battery release tabs108. The drill 100 may alternatively be powered by an external powersource such as an external battery or a power cord.

A variable speed trigger switch 110 controls the speed at which themotor rotates. The direction of rotation of the motor is controlled by areversing button 112 which slides within a finger platform 114.Ventilation openings 116 allow for cooling air to be circulated aroundthe motor inside of the main housing 102. A clutch control 118 sets themaximum torque that may be generated when using the drill 100.

The main housing portion 102 also includes an articulation button 120and a plurality of angle reference indicators 122 molded onto the outersurface 124 of the main housing 102. In the embodiment of FIG. 1, thereare five angle reference indicators 122 used to identify five angularpositions in which the head portion 104 may be placed.

The head portion 104 includes a collet locking device 126, an angleindicator 128, and a lighting structure 130 as shown in FIG. 3. Theangle at which the head portion 104 is positioned is indicated by theangle reference indicator 122 with which the angle indicator 128 isaligned. As shown in FIG. 1, the head portion 104 is at a 90 degreeangle with respect to the main housing portion 102. In FIG. 2, the headportion 104 is axially aligned with the main housing portion 102.Although the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2 has five angle referenceindicators 122, there may be additional or fewer angle referenceindicators 122 and corresponding angles at which the head portion 104may be placed with respect to the main housing portion 102.

Referring now to FIGS. 4-6, the collet locking device 126 is locatedaround a bit holder 132 which is in turn supported by a ball bearing 134that is fixed within a bearing pocket 136 of the head housing 138. Thecollet locking device 126 includes a sleeve 140 with recesses 142. Aspring 144 is positioned about the bit holder 132. The bit holder 132includes a hole 146 which receives a cylinder pin 148 and recesses 150which receive steel balls 152.

The bearing 134 abuts the head housing 138 of the head portion 104 atthe outer rear periphery of the bearing 134. More specifically, thebearing 134 abuts a flange 154. In this embodiment, the flange 154 iscontinuous about the housing 138, although a flange may alternatively bein the form of a plurality of fins located about the inner portion ofthe housing 138.

The bit holder 132 is operably coupled to a drive collet 156 which is inturn connected to an output pinion shaft 158 through a drive plate 160which is fixedly attached to the output pinion shaft 158. A lock ring162 surrounds the drive collet 156 and three locking pins 164. The lockring 162, the drive collet 156, the drive plate 160, and the lockingpins 164 all comprise an automatic spindle lock system such that theoutput bit holder 132 can only be driven from the pinion side as knownin the art. When driven from the bit side, i.e., when the tool 100 isused as a manual screwdriver, the spindle lock system keeps the outputpinion shaft 158 from rotating thus facilitating use of the tool 100 asa manual screwdriver. In an alternative embodiment, a manuallymanipulated locking device may be used.

A pinion gear 166 is located at the opposite end of the output pinionshaft 158 from the drive plate 160. One end of the output pinion shaft158 is maintained in axial alignment by a bearing 168 which fits withina bearing pocket 170. The opposite end of the output pinion shaft 158 issupported by a sleeve 172. The sleeve 172 is supported on one side by aflange 174 on the head housing 138. On the opposite side, the sleeve 172is supported by a bracket 176 also shown in FIGS. 7 and 8.

The bracket 176 includes a support area 178 configured complimentary toa portion of the sleeve 172. Two connection arms 180 are configured tobe attached to the head housing 138 as shown in FIG. 9. The bracket 176eliminates the need to provide a matching flange for flange 174 moldedinto the opposite side of the head housing 138. The elimination of theneed for an opposing flange allows for a significant increase in designfreedom as the space requirements for the support structure for thesleeve 172 are reduced. The bracket 176 may be stamped from W108 steelto provide the needed rigidity and strength.

Referring now to FIG. 10, the pinion gear 166 forms a portion of anarticulating gear system 182. The articulating gear system 182 furtherincludes a bevel gear 184 which is engaged at the output portion of thearticulating gear system 182 with the pinion gear 166 and furtherengaged on the motor portion by pinion gear 186. The shaft 188 of thebevel gear 184 is supported at one end within a hole 190 (see FIG. 9) ofthe frame 192. The frame 192 is made from a zinc and aluminum alloyZA-8. This material provides a sufficiently low coefficient of frictionto ensure relatively small frictional forces exist between the shaft 188and the frame 192.

The shaft 188 is radially and axially supported at the opposite end by aball bearing 194 supported by the frame 192. At this end of the shaft188, however, comparatively larger forces are generated than at the endof the shaft 188 inserted within the hole 190. More specifically, asshown in FIG. 10, both pinion gear 166 and pinion gear 186 are locatedon the same side of the bevel gear 184. Accordingly, as the articulatinggear system 182 rotates, a force is generated on the bevel gear 184 inthe direction of the arrow 196 toward the base 198 of the bevel gear184. This force acts to disengage the bevel gear 184 from the piniongear 166 and the pinion gear 186. With this increased force acting uponthe bevel gear 184, an unacceptable amount of axial force would betransmitted to the bearing 194. Accordingly, a thrust bearing 200 isprovided to protect the ball bearing 194 and to provide a low frictionsupport for the base 198 of the bevel gear 184. The thrust bearing 200is made of a material with an acceptably low coefficient of frictionsuch as oil impregnated bronze commercially available from McMaster Canof Chicago, Ill. Accordingly, the friction generated at the base 198 ofthe bevel gear 184 is maintained within acceptable levels.

Referring again to FIG. 5, the pinion gear 186 is fixedly attached to aplanetary gearbox shaft 202 which receives torque from a planetary gearsystem generally indicated as reference numeral 204. The planetary gearsystem 204 receives torque from a motor as is known in the art. Theplanetary gear system 204 is located within a planetary gear housing 206which is inserted partially within the frame 192. This arrangementallows for the planetary gear system 204 to be separately manufacturedfrom the other components while simplifying assembly of the planetarygear system 204 with the other components. This modularity furtherallows for alternative gearings to be provided in the planetary gearsystem 204 while ensuring a proper fit with the other components.

Continuing with FIG. 5, the frame 192 is configured to slidingly matewith the head housing 138. To this end, the head housing 138 includes ashroud portion 210 which is complimentarily formed to the frame 192about the ball bearing 194. The head housing 138 further includes arecess 212 which is configured to receive the portion of the frame 192which defines the hole 190. Also shown in FIG. 5 is a well 214 whichincludes a plurality of teeth 216 shown in FIG. 11.

With further reference to FIGS. 12-14, the well teeth 216 are formedcomplimentary to a plurality of teeth 218 which are formed in thearticulation button 120. The articulation button 120 includes a raisedcenter portion 220 which is configured to fit within a hole 222 in themain housing portion 102. The teeth 218 of the articulation button 120are further configured to mesh with a plurality of teeth 224 formed onthe inner side of the main housing portion 102 around the hole 222. Thearticulation button 120 also includes a spring receiving well 226 on theside of the articulation button 120 facing the well 214. When assembled,a spring (not shown) is located within the well 214 and extends into thespring receiving well 226 forcing the raised center portion 220 of thearticulation button 120 toward a position wherein the articulationbutton 120 projects into the hole 222.

Referring to FIGS. 5 and 15, the frame 192 is supported axially in themain housing portion 102, which in this embodiment is made of plastic,by a rib 228. The rib 228 lies beneath a fin 230 of the frame 192 whenthe frame 192 is installed in the main housing portion 102 as shown inFIG. 4. The planetary gear system 204 is mechanically secured to a motor232 which is itself electrically connected to a printed circuit board234 which in turn is electrically connected to a battery contact holder236. The contact holder 236 mates with battery pack receptacles on thebattery pack 106 and transmits battery power to the electronic circuitboard 234 through lead wires (not shown). Another pair of lead wires(not shown) extends from the circuit board 234 to the motor terminals238 to deliver the required voltage level to the motor 232.

The circuit board 234 is further connected to a light source 250 whichin one embodiment is positioned in the main housing 102 as shown in FIG.4. The light source 250 may be a light emitting diode (LED), a group ofLEDs, or other source of light. Positioning the light source 250 withinthe main housing 102 allows for removal of heat generated by the lightsource 250 using the ventilation openings 116. A flexible light pipe 252is connected to the light source 250 and extends along the main housing102 to a location adjacent the hole 190 in the frame 192 as shown inFIG. 9. An anchor clip 254 on the frame 192 ensures the light pipe 252does not come into contact with the articulating gear system 182 or thearticulation button 120 during operation of the drill 100. The lightpipe 252 is further secured to the bracket 176 with an anchor clip 256and extends into a lighting well 258 in the head housing 138. Areflective portion 260 of the head housing 138 functions as a reflector.In one embodiment, a separately formed reflector is provided within thelighting well 258. The lighting well 258 is enclosed by a lens 262 asshown in FIG. 3.

Operation of the articulating drill 100 is similar to the operation ofthe articulating drill disclosed in U.S. application Ser. No.11/593,187, filed on Nov. 3, 2006, the entire contents of which areherein incorporated by reference. Manipulation of the variable speedtrigger 110, in addition to controlling the speed at which the motor 232rotates, further causes power to be applied to the light source 250which transmits light into the light pipe 252.

The light pipe 252 conducts substantially all of the incoming light fromthe light source 250 to the lighting well 258. The light pipe 252, inaddition to transmitting light, is in this embodiment flexible.Accordingly, as the head housing 138 is articulated, the light pipe 252bends between the anchor clips 254 and 256 (see FIG. 9). U.S. Pat. No.5,485,541, which issued on Jan. 16, 1996, discloses a light pipe withacceptable flexibility for use as a light pipe 252.

Once light has been transmitted along the light pipe 252 and into thelighting well 258, the light is emitted from the light pipe 252. Thelight then reflects off of the reflective portion 260 of the headhousing 138 and out of the lens 262. The reflective portion 260 and thelens 262 shape the incoming light into a desired beam pattern. Becausethe light source 250 is located remotely from the head housing 138, thehead housing 138 remains cool.

The beam pattern 270 formed by the reflective portion 260 and the lens262 is illustrated in FIG. 16. The beam pattern 270 is described withreference to a beam pattern plane 272. A “beam pattern plane”, as thatterm is used herein, is defined to be a plane that is perpendicular tothe axis of rotation and positioned such that a beam projected onto theplane forms a pattern that is spaced apart from the location at whichthe axis of rotation intersects the plane. Thus, the plane 272 islocated close to the lens 262 such that a gap 276 exists between theaxis of rotation 274 and the beam pattern 270 as depicted in FIG. 17. Ifdesired, the beam pattern 270 may be formed such that the pattern 270further intersects the axis of rotation 274 in a second plane located ata distance from the bit holder 132 at which a work piece would bepositioned when using the drill 100 to shape the work piece.

The beam pattern 270 is an elongated beam pattern. An “elongated beampattern” as that term is used herein is a beam pattern which, whenviewed on a beam pattern plane, extends about the axis of rotation for adistance that is greater than the depth of the beam pattern. The “depth”of the beam pattern may generally be measured along a line through thecenter of the beam pattern, as formed on the beam pattern plane, thatintersects the axis of rotation. Thus, the beam pattern 270 has a beampattern length 278 that is greater than the beam pattern depth 280.

The beam pattern 270 is also an arcuate beam pattern. An “arcuate” beampattern is a beam pattern which is curved as opposed to rectangular asviewed on the beam pattern plane 272. That is, the shape of the beampattern resembles at least a portion of a toric section. If desired, thelength of the beam pattern may be extended to obtain a substantiallycomplete toric section. By way of example, FIG. 18 depicts a headhousing 290 that includes a lighting structure 292 that extendssubstantially completely around a bit holder 294. The lighting structure292 may be formed, for example, by a waveguide. One type of waveguidewhich may be used is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,550,952, which issuedon Apr. 22, 2003. As depicted in FIG. 19, the lighting structure 292generates a beam pattern 296 on a beam pattern plane 298 that issubstantially a toric section.

If desired, a plurality of elongated beam patterns may be used toprovide lighting for an articulating tool. By way of example, FIG. 20depicts a head housing 300 that includes a lighting structure 302, alighting structure 304, and a lighting structure 306 that are positionedequidistantly about a bit holder 308. The lighting structures 302, 304,and 306 generate a beam pattern 310 on a beam pattern plane 312 (seeFIG. 21) that includes arcuate beam pattern sections 314, 316, and 318.The beam pattern sections 314, 316, and 318 are each portions of a toricsection.

Moreover, while the light source 250, the light pipe 252, the reflectiveportion 260, and the lens 262 form a lighting assembly in the embodimentof FIG. 1, other lighting assemblies incorporating more or fewercomponents may be used to form elongated patterns. By way of example, alight assembly may include only a light source and a lens configured toform an elongated pattern.

While the present invention has been illustrated by the description ofexemplary processes and system components, and while the variousprocesses and components have been described in considerable detail,applicant does not intend to restrict or in any limit the scope of theappended claims to such detail. Additional advantages and modificationswill also readily appear to those skilled in the art. The invention inits broadest aspects is therefore not limited to the specific details,implementations, or illustrative examples shown and described.Accordingly, departures may be made from such details without departingfrom the spirit or scope of applicant's general inventive concept.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An articulating hand power tool comprising:a head portion including a head housing configured to articulate with amain housing within a plane defined by a bevel gear; a bit holderrotatably positioned within the head housing; and a lighting assemblyconfigured to emit a first elongated beam pattern from the head portion,the first elongated beam pattern including a beam pattern length thatintersects the plane.
 2. The power tool of claim 1, wherein the lightingassembly is further configured to emit a second elongated beam patternfrom the head portion, the second elongated beam pattern including abeam pattern length that does not intersect the plane.
 3. The power toolof claim 1, wherein the first elongated beam pattern forms at least aportion of a toric section on a beam pattern plane.
 4. The power tool ofclaim 3, wherein the first elongated beam pattern forms a substantiallycomplete toric section on the beam pattern plane.
 5. The power tool ofclaim 1, wherein the head housing defines a first lighting structure,the first lighting structure housing at least a portion of the firstlighting assembly.
 6. The power tool of claim 5, wherein the lightingassembly comprises a reflector housed within the lighting structure. 7.The power tool of claim 1, wherein the lighting assembly comprises: alight source positioned within the main housing; and a light pipeextending from the main housing into the head housing.
 8. Anarticulating hand power tool comprising: a main housing; a head portionconfigured to articulate with a main housing within a plane defined by abevel gear; a bit holder rotatably supported within the head portion; afirst lighting structure positioned on the head portion; and a lightingassembly configured to emit a first elongated beam pattern from thefirst lighting structure, the first elongated beam pattern including abeam pattern length that intersects the plane.
 9. The power tool ofclaim 8, further comprising: a second lighting structure, wherein thelighting assembly is further configured to emit a second elongated beampattern from the second lighting structure, the second elongated beampattern including a beam pattern length that does not intersect theplane.
 10. The power tool of claim 8, wherein the first elongated beampattern forms at least a portion of a toric section on a beam patternplane.
 11. The power tool of claim 10, wherein the first elongated beampattern forms a substantially complete toric section on the beam patternplane.
 12. The power tool of claim 8, wherein: the first lightingstructure comprises a lighting well; the head portion comprises a headhousing; the head housing defines the lighting well; and at least aportion of the lighting assembly is housed within the lighting well. 13.The power tool of claim 12, wherein the lighting assembly comprises: alight source positioned within the main housing; and a light pipeextending from the main housing into the lighting well.
 14. The powertool of claim 12, wherein the lighting assembly comprises a reflectorhoused within the lighting well.
 15. The power tool of claim 8, whereinthe lighting assembly comprises: a light source positioned within themain housing; and a light pipe extending from the main housing into thehead portion.
 16. The power tool of claim 15, wherein the light pipe isa flexible light pipe configured to operably bend at least ninetydegrees.